General secretary of the General Federation of Trade Unions GAWAIN LITTLE calls for support and participation in the national partnership organised to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 1926 general strike
Latest editorial
Cuban education expert meets British teachers
After an inspiring meeting in Bolton Socialist Club addressed by a visitor from the Cuban Ministry of Higher Education, teacher ROBERT POOLE reflects on what we can learn from the education system in Cuba
Cuban kids
After brutal police crackdowns on pensioners and the forced approval of secret IMF deals, trade unions are finally responding to grassroots pressure and fighting back against savage neoliberal reforms, reports BERT SCHOUWENBURG
Bizarrely, Trump’s latest attacks now include the National Zoo, but his real and racist agenda is to strip everything black from the country’s cultural institutions, writes LINDA PENTZ GUNTER
The transformation of a stable secular state into a fractured ruin largely ruled by Western-backed fundamentalists exposes the hollow nature of ‘multipolarity’ and the absence of principled anti-imperialism today, writes ZOLTAN ZIGEDY
Facing economic turmoil, Jim Callaghan’s government rejected Tony Benn’s alternative economic strategy in favour of cuts that paved the way for Thatcherism — and the cuts-loving Labour of the present era, writes KEITH FLETT
The economic value of disability benefits far outweighs their cost, argues Dr DYLAN MURPHY
As tensions rise in the Middle East, the role of Iran in the region’s political balance becomes ever more significant. STEVE BISHOP assesses the current situation
THE British education system often seems beset by gloom. Teachers are dispirited and alienated from the profession — and so they are leaving in droves. If we try to analyse the cause, it is difficult to pinpoint any one factor.
Is it Ofsted? Is it the relentless pursuit of grades? Is it the deskilling? The polarisation in the absurd “trad v prog” debate? Is it poor behaviour? Low pay and overwork? Is it simply that we feel undervalued? Maybe all of the above?
It was therefore a privilege to meet Dr Santiago Rivera at Bolton Socialist Club earlier this month where he discussed education in Cuba, Cuban life more generally and the challenges faced by the illegal blockade of Cuba.
More from this author
From colonialism to the Troubles, the story of England’s first colony is one of exploitation, resistance, and solidarity — and one we should fight to ensure is told, writes teacher ROBERT POOLE
As the government moves to rein in academy freedoms, former darling of conservative education reform Katharine Birbalsingh cries ‘Marxism.’ Education columnist ROBERT POOLE examines how academisation has failed our children while enriching executives and empowering ideologues at the expense of democratic accountability
ROBERT POOLE reports back from his mission to Cuba delivering aid and learning from Cuban educators
As the NEU meets for its annual conference, teacher and union rep ROBERT POOLE reflects on the most intense period of industrial action in his teaching career
